“All dairy farmers must not be misled and regard their
SFP as a cash bonanza, when they receive their cheques,” says
RABDF chairman, Tim Brigstocke. “And they most certainly
should not include the payment into their dairy enterprise costings
otherwise this will give a totally false picture of the economics
of milk production.

“The SFP is a new payment made to dairy producers which
overall, reflects the movement of the former European support
mechanism towards delivering environmental benefits. The SFP
is not intended to offset lower milk prices, nor should it be
recouped further up the supply chain,” he explains.

“The SFP is a short term measure, which for the majority
of dairy farmers based in England will be severely eroded over
the next eight years, while the trend will be more profound in
the Severely Disadvantaged Areas where the payments were initially
set at a lower rate.”

He adds: “We urge all dairy farmers to put their payment
in a separate account. It can be used towards a farm diversification
project, a completely new business venture off farm, or simply
for reinvestment purposes.”

· RABDF has demanded that Defra announces
at the earliest when it intends to complete the SFP payout. “Farmers
in England need a firm date when they will receive their full
SFP in order to make business plans and stem dwindling industry
confidence,” says Mr Brigstocke.